It's a peaceful day in the woodland city of Cumbergoine. The sun is shining, the birds are chirping, and every elf and beastperson seems to be in a fantastic mood.

Inside the throne room, dressed in her revealing green gown Prime Nurturer Talindra is tending to her new granddaughter, a burnt umber elf, no older than ten. The little girl weaves a crown of flowers, instantly focused.

Something in the air shifts, Talindra's long ears perk up, listening. A distant scream echoes, almost too far away. Guards step up to take positions around her granddaughter as the leader of the elves moves to investigate.

Just outside, a mild sandstorm blows, very unusual for the deep forest of the city. She spots one of her subjects, struggling to navigate through. Talidra casts a protective sphere around herself, and moves to save the lost elf. As she grows close, she realizes something is terribly wrong.

The elf is aging rapidly. A decade, then a century, passes in mere moments, the elf's hair grows beyond her feet, bright white, and her skin sags as it falters to gravity. Talindra shields her, but it's already too late. The ancient elf crumbles to dust, and blows away with the sand.

The Prime Nurturer faces the direction of the storm, going against the flow, she eventually finds the source. A great wyrm, taller than any building, and almost any tree, breathes a gale of sand down on the city below.

Her breathing quickens, watching the primordial dragon wipe out her people is a horror second only to the knowledge that she can't do anything to stop it. No mortal could hope to face one and live.

A new expression forms on her face, one of resolve, determination in the face of certain death. She gestures with her hands, they begin to glow with a soft white light. Slowly, the sandstorm dissipates, as the colossal dragon is encased in a miniature moon.

After a moment of stillness, a crack forms on the surface, revealing a furious, green, slitted eye.

CROSSROADS ONLINE: DRAGON'S REIGN appears as the scene fades to black.

"Shit, Talindra!" I shout, standing from the chair in the cozy cafe.

"What's wrong?" Halanaestra stands with him.

"She's in danger. There's a dragon in the city!" I move to leave, my four children join me.

Oorrcca has to duck out the door, his huge monochromatic head almost hits the frame anyways,

Reluvethel's thick tail sways behind him as he takes his tea to go.

Naexi, with two clawed fingers, leaves a gold piece on the table as both payment and tip.

Outside, just like in the cutscene, a sandstorm blew, peeling the exterior and eroding the roads. I step outside, heedless of the danger, and immediately receive a debuff.

Sands of Time - Health and speed reduced by 1% per second. At 100 stacks, die of old age.

By the time I retreat back in, I have three stacks.

"We have to be smart about this." I say, more to myself than to them.

"I can do something about the sand temporarily, and remove the debuff, but only once every few minutes, and only off of one person." Reluventhel, my Oasis Healer, informs me.

"I can put water in its path but it might just make mud." Oorrcca offers.

"I'm not suited to the task." Naexi admits, unashamed.

"What about you, Hally?" I ask Halanaestra.

"Unlike my mother, my Lunar specialization is in offense, not defense." She tells me.

"I'll put my circular saws in front as we move, Orca, Rel, do what you can to fill in the gaps." I gesture with my hands to my two sons. They nod, and I kick the door open, the bell jingles madly.

Like in the blizzard, my Circular Saw spell keeps the worst of the storm off of us. Switching from weapon to weapon as the spell ends takes a second, but that's enough time to get sandblasted. Rel controls the sand, stopping it from flaying us, and Orca manages to catch some grains in orbs of water.

We make excellent progress, and manage to reach Talindra in the heart of the city. She's still protected by her bubble, but the moon encasing the dragon is cracked and shaking, ready to falter at any moment.

"Talindra!" I call over the roar of the storm.

She turns, and her silhouette is framed by the moon as it shatters. The storm picks up speed and force, almost knocking us all over, and decimating Talindra's protective barrier. I dive, curling my body around hers. She gets the bubble back up around both of us before I take too many stacks.

Just as I commanded, all three of my weapons spun up to protect me children.

I spot the nearest shelter and order my weapons to herd them there. All six of us are protected from the worst of it inside a little hut, an abandoned home by the looks of it.

"What do we do?" I ask Talindra.

"You go for reinforcements. We'll evacuate whoever we can find using the root tunnels." she tells me, holding my face to plant a kiss on my lips. "Your people, the Weaponmasters, reside in their secluded fortress far to the north. Find them, and bring help when you return."

Before I can ask any questions, she shoves me backwards, and I fall through an open portal.

The loading screen shows a far off castle on a mountainside, obscured by snow. When my vision returned, it took an extra second for me to notice, the scene before me was identical to the loading screen's rendition.

I mount my chariot and start heading towards the distant castle.

Citadelle Gobéliard Thozur thought to me.

You know it?

Yes. It had a long history of raising great warriors, before it was besieged by ice giants.

ソニック・ザ・ヘッジホッグ

史上最高のゲームだよ

富士山に雪が降ってるよ

Jellyfish added to the conversation in his usual way, unfortunately I still didn't speak any japanese.

Even at an awkward angle, my goats get us up the mountainside and to the castle gate in short order. It may just be a trick of the mind, I don't think them being goats has any bearing on their ability to climb. All mounts heave the same way mechanically, as far as I know.

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

The castle looks long abandoned, the walls are starting to crumble and the drawbridge is held up by a single chain, the other blows lazily in the wind.

Thozur, see if you can find anybody?

My hammer flies over the wall, and returns moments later.

No one. Not even corpses.

Alright, go ahead and break the chain.

They crash into the metal, pulling it out of the wall, as the chain was stronger than the worn stone. The drawbridge comes crashing down, almost breaking apart and falling into the empty moat. Maybe there was a better way of doing that…

I take a hesitant step out onto the wood, making sure it's not going to give under my weight. It holds, and one foot in front of the other, I make my way into the citadel.

As soon as I cross the threshold, a huge sword crosses my neck.

"Who're you?" the ice giant wielding the aforementioned sword asks in a more wispy voice than I expected from a being of his stature.

I thought you said there wasn't anyone here?

I… didn't see anyone.

A dozen or more ice giants reveal themselves, all brandishing weapons.

"My name is Earl, I am the Paragon of Weaponmasters, and I've come seeking aid." I tell them.

"Paragon?" a particularly old-looking giant asks. "There hasn't been a Paragon in millenia."

"I'm not familiar with the history, but I can demonstrate my abilities if that would get this sword away from my throat." I explain.

Without needing further convincing, the giant holding me at swordpoint withdraws.

"Welcome to Citadelle Gobéliard, Paragon Earl. I apologize for our hostility, it had been some time since we received visitors. You're our second one in so many days, and she was… less understanding." the old giant tells me. "My name is The Black Blade."

"Another visitor?" I start, "Wait, your name is The Black Blade? Is that how ice giants are named normally?"

"No." The ancient giant raises his own sword, a terrible, serrated, black-metal thing from my nightmares. "I'm The Black Blade."

"You're the sword." I say, not ask. "Are all of you weapons and not giants?"

They all nod, raising their swords. They are every color of the rainbow, different shapes and sizes, but all perfectly maintained. Except for one, but it's so rusty I assume that's it's thing.

"So you're what, possessing the giants?" I ask.

"In a way." Black Blade nods.

They do seem… off, somehow. I wouldn't call the ice giants I've fought before lively, but these guys seem like well-preserved zombies.

"So, I know we've just met, but my girlfriend's city is under attack by a big-as-fuck sand dragon, and we need help. What can I do to earn your support?" I get straight to the point.

"We would be willing to help you if you could lend a hand around the Citadel." The old giant confirmed my fears, side quests.

Restoring Citadelle Gobéliard accepted!

Assist The Black Blade 0/1

Assist The Facelifter 0/1

Assist Hope's End and Night's Fall 0/1

Assist Seethe 0/1

Why do all of their names sound so sinister? 'The Facelifter' in particular sends a chill up my spine.

Vigdolg does the 'I know something you don't and I'm not going to tell you because you'll suffer more that way' chuckle in my head. Damned evil axe.

"What do you need?" I address the leader.

"Well, I'd ask for help with administration, but my most pressing issue is Ms. Elrinnore." he sighs. A huge vapor cloud rolls from his mouth.

"Let's go see her then." I say, gesturing for him to lead the way. He takes me past the crowd of giants, deep into the fortress, and into a decrepit throne room. The only source of illumination is an unintentional skylight, dramatically positioned over the throne.

The woman laying there, like a cat that thinks they own the place, watches me with burning eyes.

She's a demon of some sort, red skin, little wings, a tail gently swaying its heart shaped tip over her cloven hooves. Her outfit is something to behold as well, a battle skirt, armored corset, and a pair of shields barely holding everything back. As I finish taking her in, and finally notice the curved horns on her head, I silently thank Talindra for our open relationship.

What am I thinking? She's not some object that I get to decide I want! She's a person, even if she's not a player. I'm going to go into this without presumptions.

"Earl. So good to finally meet you." she bites one of her fingernails, looking me up and down.

Nevermind.

"Elrinnore, I presume?" for some reason she doesn't have a nameplate over her head.

"The one and only." She lifts herself from the chair, flying up a foot, then lands on her hooves. The curves of her upper and lower halves jiggle. Crossing the room to me, she sways, and puts just enough extra into each step to put on a show, while making it look effortless. "Did you know succubi can change our form at will?"

"I did not, is that what you are?" I ask, watching her circle out of my line of sight behind me. When she returns on the other side, she's become an orc with the same hourglass figure. "Interesting."

"Mmm… isn't it?" she smiles, her tusks extend it into something far more sinister than normal teeth could.

"The giants told me they need help dealing with you, I assume they'd like you to leave." I say, trying to focus on the task at hand.

"Do you want me to leave?" she purrs.

"I want to get my quests done, so…" I shrug. "What do you need, B-Blade?" I face the giant.

"She hasn't offered to lend a hand like you have, Paragon. She's just been pestering us with uncomfortable questions. We'd just like her to stop is all." he explains.

I turn back to the succubus, eyebrow raised. She changed back while I was looking away.

"Fine." She crosses her arms under her breasts, lifting them. "But you have to do something for me, Earl."

"What would that be?" I cross my arms right back at her.

"Well… you know." She dips her chin to the side, and looks at me coyly. "What does every woman want from you?"

"Between you being a demon and so forward, this feels like a trap." I say.

But that doesn't mean I'm not going to jump head first into it.

"Duel me." She demands.

"...that's not, like, a metaphor or something, right?" I wonder.

"Nope. Just a good old-fashioned one vee one. We fight until one of us drops." she explains, still very much sounding like a double entendre.

"And you'll stop harassing them if I win?" I question.

"I'll stop either way." she promises.

"Alright, let's do it." I allow my four weapons to float beside me, two to a side.

"Let's." she responds, four identical axes float beside her.

She's a weaponmaster? After my father in law, may he rest in torment, my son, and now her, I'm starting to feel less special.

An official barrier snaps into place around us, establishing the throne room as a duel arena. I haven't seen anything like it outside of the dueling rooms in the Halls of Honor, there must be some way to engage them anywhere.

Elrinnore wastes no time, summoning a Wall of Swords behind me, two Tornado Edges to my sides, and one Circular Saw in orbit around her. She saunters towards me, utterly confident that she has me trapped.

I use the combination of actions that aren't technically a spell, but I refer to as 'Yeet'. I throw Thozur over her shoulder, Exchange, Summon, and deploy my own four weapons in orbit around me. Our axes cancel each other out, so only three of my weapons make it through, but that's more than enough to shave off most of her health.

She exchanges with one of the axes on the other side of the arena, drops another Tornado Edge on me, then uses Thunder God and zaps me. I manage to deflect one bolt, but as I try to escape the area of effect on foot, she blacks me in with a Wall of Swords.

I try to Yeet again, but I lose health too rapidly, and lose the duel.

"How long have you been a Weaponmaster?" I ask.

"Less than a week." she says proudly. "Do you know why I wanted to duel?"

"Becuase you get off on beating my ass?" I answer, half jokingly.

"Well yes, but, I wanted to prove to you that I could take your title at any time. I don't want the attention, so I'm going to let you stay ahead of me, but just barely." she smirks.

"Well, point proven." I admit. "So you are a player, then. Where's your nameplate?"

"Oh, that old thing? I didn't want one, so I got rid of it." She shrugs.

"You can do that?" I wonder.

"Yes, I can do that." she emphasizes I. "I can do a lot of things most people can't." her fingers glide up her thigh, pulling at the battle skirt and revealing garters.

I gulp. God, it's like she used my internet history to build a character.

"Why don't I help you around the fort? Get the quest done myself." She offers.

"Uh, sure." I respond hesitantly.

"Yay!" She celebrates with one leg and both arms up in the air.

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